What is the most desirable objective during the cleaning operations for removing surface penetrant?

The most desirable objective during the cleaning operations for removing surface penetrant is to ensure that no penetrant remains in any defects while minimizing the residual penetrant on the surface. This is critical because the primary purpose of liquid penetrant testing is to identify surface-breaking discontinuities. If penetrant is left in these defects, it can create false indications or mask the actual defects, leading to inaccurate or misleading results. Therefore, the goal is to clean the component sufficiently so that any residual penetrant does not hinder the inspection while ensuring that indications from actual defects are clearly visible. This approach balances the need to highlight defects without compromising the integrity of the test results.